Hearing set on coastal master plan

Mon, 2012-01-16 14:00

The State’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority will hold a public briefing on its recently released Draft 2012 Coastal Master Plan on Tuesday, 3-5 p.m., at the Morgan City Harbor and Terminal District’s office building.

The CPRA released its draft of the master plan on Thursday, and it is available for citizens’ review during a two-month comment period, which will end Feb. 25.

Comments, if deemed applicable for the plan, will be incorporated. The plan will be submitted to the Louisiana Legislature in early April.

The CPRA’s Draft 2012 Coastal Master Plan is based on a two-year analysis involving some of the state’s best scientists as well as national and international specialists. The state used this analysis to select 145 high-performing projects that could deliver measurable benefits to Louisiana communities and coastal ecosystem in the coming decades.

The plan shows that if these projects were fully funded, at a pricetag of $50 billion, the state could substantially increase flood protection for communities and create a sustainable coast.

Louisiana has lost 1,883 square miles of land since the 1930s.

To address this crisis, the Louisiana Legislature passed Act 8 in 2006, which created the CPRA and required it to develop a coastal master plan every five years. The first master plan was approved by the legislature in 2007.